Sunday trading laws are set to be overhauled for the first time in 20 years as the Government devolves control over them to local authorities.
Business secretary Sajid Javid announced yesterday that devolved Sunday trading laws will allow councils to ‘zone’ any relaxation so they will be able to prioritise high streets and city centres.
The new powers will also offer more protection for shop workers who do not want to work on Sundays. They will only have to give one month’s notice to large shops that they no longer want to work Sundays, down from the previous three months.
Workers will also have a new right to opt-out of working additional hours and the Government will strengthen the duty on employers to notify employees of their rights about working Sundays.
A part of the Enterprise Bill, the new measures are designed to encourage people to visit high street stores more by allowing shops to stay open longer.
Mr Javid said: ‘These new powers are about giving local areas the choice to extend Sunday trading hours to meet the needs of their local businesses and communities. It is local people who will make the decision.’
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) contests this claim and argues that most councils will apply the new laws to retail parks and so the high street won’t benefit.
ACS chief executive James Lowman said: ‘Changing Sunday trading regulations will not help the high street, it would actually damage small high street stores as trade would get diverted to large out of town supermarkets.
‘While ministers talk of increasing high street sales, our survey of local councils shows that extended Sunday hours would be applied to out of town parks, hurting high streets.’
One of the major impetuses behind the new powers is the rise in online shopping. Online businesses accounted for 12.8% of all retail spending in December 2014, up from just 2.4% in 2006.
The Government claims that the new rules will allow high street shops to adapt to these new buying habits, an argument the ACS refutes.
‘The government’s claim that there is a link between the growth of online retailing and the opening hours of shops is simply wrong,’ Mr Lowman said.
‘Many stores opened for very long hours on Black Friday, only to see more customers stay at home and shop online than in previous years.’
‘Shoppers are using the internet to search out lower prices, to save time, and to access a wide range of products. Sunday trading restrictions are not a factor in the growth of online shopping,’ he added.
The powers will be devolved to unitary and district councils in England, county and county borough councils in Wales, and also to the Mayor of London. It is also the intention that the powers will be devolved to the Mayor of Greater Manchester when elected.
Sunday trading rules are already devolved to Scotland where Sunday opening is unrestricted.
